Labelling Theories of Crime

Question 1

What are labelling theorists?

Answer 1

micro
meanings of thing are constantly being redefined through the interactions of individuals within groups

Question 2

Labelling theory’s key assumptions on crime and deviance.

Answer 2

reject official statistics and structural explanations (rather look to individuals)
crime is socially constructed
qualitative approaches

Question 3

Example of how crime and deviance is socially constructed.

Answer 3

Before 1979 homosexuality a criminal offence in UK, still anti-homosexuality laws in 76 countries.
Abortion illegal in UK until 1967, still extremely strict laws surrounding it in Northern Ireland.

Question 4

What does Becker argue about agents of social control?

Answer 4

their subjective decisions are the basis for what’s counted as criminal/ deviant
‘moral entrepreneurs’

Question 5

Who does Becker argue are the agents of social control do to less powerful groups?

Answer 5

Carry out greater surveillance and control (e.g. patrolling deprived areas)
More likely to be labelled

Question 6

Who does Becker argue are especially vulnerable, give a statistic to support this?

Answer 6

Ethnic minority males
Equality and Human Rights Commission: police 28x more likely to stop and search black males than white males

Question 7

Explain Becker’s process which leads to becoming a career criminal (consequences/ SFP of labels

Answer 7

Person labelled as a deviant publicly -> self concept changes due to how other see them -> deviant amplification as label becomes a master status (overrides all other labels) -> deviant career.

Question 8

Give the example of an ex-con and how they might become a career criminal.

Answer 8

They ‘suffer’ from the convict status -> harder to seek legitimate employment, rent a house etc (legitimate opportunities blocked due to label) -> more vulnerable to commit more crime to survive

Question 9

What is Lemert’s primary deviance?

Answer 9

A deviant act that has not been publicly labelled, insignificant acts with little significance for a person’s status

Question 10

Give an example of primary deviance.

Answer 10

A speeding ticket

Question 11

What is Lemert’s secondary deviance?

Answer 11

Involved being caught and publicly labelled a criminal and a societal reaction -> master status -> criminal career

Question 12

What does Cicourel say about typification?

Answer 12

They’re the police’s assumptions/ stereotypes on what the typical offender looks like e.g. w/c EM males

Question 13

How does Cicourel argue that m/c use negotiation of justice?

Answer 13

They’re able to convince those in the justice system that their child was ‘having a tough time’, has a bright future, they could deal with the situation themselves etc, therefore are less likely to be charged

Question 14

What could be used as evidence that the m/c use negotiation of justice?

Answer 14

The lower m/c crime rates

Question 15

Who could be used as a modern example of negotiation of justice?

Answer 15

Brock Turner - found guilty of SA at Stanford
Parents suggested in court that his life shouldn’t be ruined for ‘20mins of action’
Received 6 month sentence (max. was 14yrs)

Question 16

Give some brief evaluation of Cicourel’s negotiation of justice.

Answer 16

Deterministic - assumes all members of the justice system label delinquents the same way.
Middle and upper classes can’t always negotiate - millionaire’s daughter charged 2yrs for driving around 2011 London riot looters, judge stated that she was from a ‘loving and supporting home’ as an aggravating factor (harsher sentence due to advantaged background).
Incomplete explanation - offers no argument about why crimes committed in 1st place.

Question 17

Who were Cohen’s mods and rockers and why were they in the media?

Answer 17

Fights between 2 youth subcultures in seaside resorts on bank holidays 1960s.

Question 18

How did the mods and rockers become folk devils?

Answer 18

Reports on their behaviour constructed a narrative of them as the clear villain (the folk devils) which kickstarted a moral panic.

Question 19

How did the moral panic (labelling) of the mods and rockers create deviancy amplification?

Answer 19

Started out only minor scuffles but media’s disproportionate reaction led to police acting more forcefully to conflict -> further conflicts.
People involved read the stories about themselves and started to play the parts that were written for them.

Question 20

How does Venkatesh support Becker’s agents of social control?

Answer 20

Police targeted the Chicago gangs drug runners but didn’t label the drug lords due to their power.

Question 21

How do realists criticise labelling theory?

Answer 21

Argue that labelling theory ignores the actual victims of crime.
Crime level statistics are not a social construction, they are the real levels of crime.

Question 22

How do Marxists criticise labelling theory?

Answer 22

They argue they are deeper, structural explanations of crime (the ruling class creating laws to benefit themselves and maintain power), not individual labels.

Question 23

How is labelling theory too deterministic?

Answer 23

It assumes labels always lead to deviancy amplification, assuming offenders are passive and have no free will, giving them a ‘victim status’.

Question 24

What is a strength of labelling theory?

Answer 24

It raises important issues such as the abuse of police power.
e.g. discrimination in how the law is enforced